FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

If you’re confronted with dampness and timber problems for the first time, remember that many other home owners will probably have had to deal with them as well, so here’s how you can benefit from their experience – by browsing through the questions we are most frequently asked.

If you can’t find the answer you’re looking for, then go to our ‘Ask the Experts’ page and let us help you on a one-to-one basis.

Recently when I had work done on my damp problem, after taking the plaster off the walls, no time was allowed for the bricks to dry out before putting the new plaster on, then inject the chemicals.Should bricks have dried out before adding new plaster.

The key to replastering after the installation of a remedial dpc is the specification of the plaster. By definition the wall will be damp and will need to dry out but of greater significance is the likely presence of contaminated salts - chlorides and nitrates - which will have been drawn up into the masonry with the rising damp. These salts can absorb and release moisture so that the wall may stay damp and the plaster may be damaged by crystallisation as a result. A standard lightweight plaster is not suitable for this situation - instead a sand and cement render with a salt retardant additive must be used to counteract the salt contamination in the masonry and stop it migrating to the surface.